Knowledge Management Practice at a Bulgarian Bank: A Case Study

This paper reports on knowledge management (KM) practices in the customer service and lending departments of one of Bulgaria's top retail banks and investigates how KM processes can be further improved. The Bank's KM activities have been studied using observations, interviews and informal discussions for data collection. Findings were compared and contrasted with existing literature in similar contexts. Although rudiments of knowledge sharing are evident from the KM activities in different departments of the bank, the limitations such as resistance to change of the implemented KM systems are impeding the effectiveness of the knowledge management process. More training and incentives are needed to increase knowledge creation and sharing. Moreover, a clearly articulated KM strategy along with success criteria and commitment and support from senior management is needed. There is a severe lack of knowledge management studies in Bulgarian context in general and Bulgarian banking sector in particular. The authors' findings will potentially help in improving knowledge sharing practice as well as provide a valuable insight into knowledge management related issues in the Bulgarian context. The findings from this research can be useful to companies from Eastern Europe and other regions in improving their knowledge sharing practice

Measuring the effect of customer relationship management (CRM) components on the non financial performance of commercial banks: Egypt case

This paper presents customer relationship management (CRM) components as applied on the Egyptian Commercial Banks, examined from the bankers' point of view. Then, it intends to measure their effect on the level of customer satisfaction and loyalty from the customers’ point of view as examples of the non financial performance measures. The paper is quantitative in nature and consists of two different structured questionnaires using convenience/quota sampling. The first involved 180 employees in order to measure CRM applicability, and the second involved 270 customers to measure the level of customer satisfaction and loyalty and their effect on the Egyptian Commercial Banks' financial performance The findings show that the selected banks apply CRM components but the level of application differs from one bank to another. The results showed a significant positive relationship between CRM and customer satisfaction in the Egyptian Commercial Banks, when applying them together and not separately. In addition, there is a strong positive effect between customer satisfaction and loyalty which was reflected on the Commercial Banks' financial performance. The findings confirm the importance of studying and implementing CRM to achieve customer loyalty and improve the Egyptian Commercial Banks financial performance. Banks wishing to improve their relationships with customers need to focus on the CRM components to develop relevant and effective marketing strategies and tactics. The paper measures the CRM as a multidimensional construct as applied on the Egyptian Commercial Banks and relate it to the achievement of the ultimate goal of retaining customers to gaining a sustainable competitive advantage and achieve more profits

An Empirical Analysis of Internal Marketing on Organizational Commitment:a Study of Banks in Lagos-Nigeria

The purpose of this paper was to investigate the effects of aspects of internal marketing on organizational commitment of employees. The research was conducted among managers of Nigerian banks situated in the major commercial city in Lagos, Nigeria. Internal marketing is growing recognition of both scholars and professionals with the increasing commoditization of products and services and the continuing failure of technology driven customer relationship management. The main criteria of internal marketing were derived from the literature; provided the backbone for our internal marketing dimensions. Data was gathered from a survey among 128 managers who rated self completion questions on the basis of their perception. In order to achieve the purpose, five hypotheses have been formulated that link the dimensions of internal marketing including motivation, job satisfaction, training,” understanding and differentiation”, “inter-functional coordination and integration” “to organizational commitment. Data analysis indicated that “inter-functional coordination and integration”, training and motivation have positive effects on the organizational commitment of employees among Nigerian banks. Therefore if the banks want to ultimately provide a better service experience for their customers, it is recommended that more attention be directed toward enhancing organizational commitment among personnel, with a focus on the effective aspects of internal marketing

Service quality measurement in the internet context: A proposed model

The survival of any organisation in a highly competitive environment depends on its ability to provide the best service quality to its existing customers as the quality of service is a key factor in the success of any organisation. It is well established that the measurement of service quality is an important procedure for the improvement of the success and performance of any organisation. Facts indicate that more attention is needed toward developing an industry-specific scale for measuring customer service quality within the still-developing sector of Internet-based self-service technologies. The main objectives of this research paper are two-fold; firstly, to review comprehensively previous and contemporary literature on service quality measurement and to discuss the key issues on the development of an industry-specific scale for measuring customer service quality in the specific context of Internet-based self-service technologies, secondly, to propose a conceptual model for service quality perceptions of Internet-based self-service technologies through identifying its key antecedents and consequences. The findings of this study will be significant for both scholars and practitioners in this area as it provides a deep understanding of the way customers evaluate services provided via self-service technologies

Towards a co-creation framework in the retail banking services industry: a cross-cultural analysis

An underlying theme in modern marketing is the notion that value is not solely created within the boundaries of the firm, it is created co-jointly with outside parties. This paper aims to study the outcomes of co-creation from a customer perspective. Specifically, it examines the effects of co-creation on customer satisfaction, loyalty and word-of-mouth (WOM) within the banking services industry. Furthermore, we consider potential differences between consumers from Spain and the UK, thus incorporating cross-cultural aspects in our research. The research demonstrates that firms should not only respond to the differences that exist within different cultural contexts and incorporate these in co-creation initiatives; more importantly, firms should undertake co-creation activities themselves as these can result in customers who are more satisfied, loyal to the company and more likely to carry out positive WOM, which can ultimately lead to new customers

Critical review of the e-loyalty literature: a purchase-centred framework

Over the last few years, the concept of online loyalty has been examined extensively in the literature, and it remains a topic of constant inquiry for both academics and marketing managers. The tremendous development of the Internet for both marketing and e-commerce settings, in conjunction with the growing desire of consumers to purchase online, has promoted two main outcomes: (a) increasing numbers of Business-to-Customer companies running businesses online and (b) the development of a variety of different e-loyalty research models. However, current research lacks a systematic review of the literature that provides a general conceptual framework on e-loyalty, which would help managers to understand their customers better, to take advantage of industry-related factors, and to improve their service quality. The present study is an attempt to critically synthesize results from multiple empirical studies on e-loyalty. Our findings illustrate that 62 instruments for measuring e-loyalty are currently in use, influenced predominantly by Zeithaml et al. (J Marketing. 1996;60(2):31-46) and Oliver (1997; Satisfaction: a behavioral perspective on the consumer. New York: McGraw Hill). Additionally, we propose a new general conceptual framework, which leads to antecedents dividing e-loyalty on the basis of the action of purchase into pre-purchase, during-purchase and after-purchase factors. To conclude, a number of managerial implementations are suggested in order to help marketing managers increase their customers’ e-loyalty by making crucial changes in each purchase stage